oblivion

Very weird. I rode my motorcycle today and didn't even need a thermal liner or heavy gloves. Might hit 80 around Chicago - record-setting. I don't know if the time change has upset Spencer or what, but I've noticed a few more body feathers in the bottom of his cage as well as some of his chest feathers appearing ratty - as if he's chewing the ends of them. This is a bit discouraging and I really hope it's just temporary. He's not acting much different/upset, so maybe I'm just being hyper-vigilant. I know he can't read a clock so the time change shouldn't matter, but of course activity in the house has shifted by an hour and maybe that's enough to throw him off a bit. Again, hoping it's temporary. It's so funny how his moods change from day to day - sometimes adventurous, sometimes cautious. Sometimes boisterous, other times quiet as a mouse. Some days he's hesitant to climb into his travel cage for 'downstairs' time. This morning, I went and cleaned/refilled his water bowl and by the time I returned, he was nowhere in his big cage. I looked around the floor for him and called him a few times and eventually he clanged the bell in his travel cage which was by my feet. He'd climbed down and settled himself in that quickly, I never even saw him. So I took him and Anya downstairs for some time in the sun as I ate my breakfast. I really never know what I'm going to get with him. That's probably my fault in part because he doesn't really know what he's going to get from me. I'm not really a 'routine' person and our household only slightly more so. I mean he knows he'll get fresh food and water in the mornings, snacks, out of cage, and downstairs if he wants in the evenings, but other than that - there's variance every day. Aside from weekends which are always different, my wife works form home some Fridays and not others. With a Kindergarten-aged kid, there are a lot of sick days when one of us is home mid-week. And my wake-up and bed times can vary by a few hours each day. I know that's not ideal for birds and I try to insulate them from it as much as possible, but there's only so much I can do. Luckily, other than this suspected feather damage (and very mild if any), all pets seem to take it pretty well in stride. But I have to wonder how much it's holding Spencer up. . . .

Heh, then I'll definitely get some video so I can get some expert laughter on the matter.

Thanks, Aerial! Here's a little update cross-posted form my Spencer thread: Anya, is getting a LOT more focused out-of-cage/on Dad time since she needs meds twice a day now. In addition to that, she's getting a lot more flight time - something she had a lot of in 'the olden days,' though considerably less when cat, puppies, and kid came along. But I can now 'send' her to either of her play gyms form across the room (with about 70% success). Not too shabby. My daughter is also getting a lot more time/experience handling her. Really, I often forget Anya's even 'sick.' That said, I just realized that tomorrow is her last day for her antibiotics, so she'll be down to just one oral med in the a.m. and 2 in the evening. Next checkup is next week when we hope the uric acid levels continue to decline, and calcium and glucose levels are OK. Two of my girls. by oblivion9999, on Flickr

Thanks for the comments, everyone. Nothing new on the feather front other than I found a recently shed body or secondary feather in his cage yesterday. It was a mature feather, no blood. I was a little concerned because the end was chewed up a bit, but I don't know if he plucked and then chewed it or if it fell out on its own, he found it on the bottom of the cage, and THEN chewed it. Little turkey. He's had a couple more showers with me and he really seems to be enjoying them - he even let me give him a hand up to get on the shower ledge again - pretty rare. As for the new cage - he's still only been in it the once. I've tried to tempt him in there with treats, bottles, toys, etc., but so far, no joy. He didn't have a bad experience in there, he just doesn't seem motivated to check it out again. Maybe this weekend when I have time to wait him out, I'll put his breakfast in there. There's no rush, though - we don't have any long trips in the works right now and he still loves his small travel cage. One side note is that my 'tiel, Anya, is getting a LOT more focused out-of-cage/on Dad time since she needs meds twice a day now. In addition to that, she's getting a lot more flight time - something she had a lot of in 'the olden days,' though considerably less when cat, puppies, and kid came along. But I can now 'send' her to either of her play gyms form across the room now (with about 70% success). Not too shabby. My daughter is also getting a lot more time/experience handling her. Really, I often forget Anya's even 'sick.' That said, I just realized that tomorrow is her last day for her antibiotics, so she'll be down to just one oral med in the a.m. and 2 in the evening. Next checkup is next week when we hope the uric acid levels continue to decline and glucose levels are OK. BTW, we've had gorgeous "It's still technically Winter" weather lately, and they got some time on the patio on Sunday: Guard-Kitty is protecting the birds. (Ok, not really.) by oblivion9999, on Flickr

I've got a puzzling one maybe someone has some input on. When Spencer is on the floor (room or cage) and I offer him a new toy or treat sometimes he does this silly move where he'll bend forward really low and then walk backward in a circle - usually with his beak just off the ground and I thing always clockwise. It is SO funny and I can't tell if it's irritation or intrigue. I never really push it to see if he'll lunge. He'll do anywhere from one to several complete circles like that. I need to try to get a video. Anyone????

Yeah, that sounds like regurgitation action to me. My grey does that as a 'good night,' but only through the bars. It's brief (never actually brought anything up) and just before bed, so I'm not too worried about it getting him too wound up, but that is something to keep in mind. Aside from attempted flight, where I am, anyway, hawks would be my main concern for outside birds. Coopers and Sharp-shinned hawks are known as terrors of backyard bird feeders because of their agile low-level attacks between trees and buildings. Just one more thing to be paranoid about. And of course in Oliver's case, there's the risk of sunburn. He really is a cutie - nekkid and all.

Interesting idea - amodification on option C. I like it. If I build it high enough I could still fit the travel cage under it, too, to get him there.

I recently discovered that at least one of the local bird rescues around here sells both new and used (collected as donations or with surrenders) cages. Maybe check with them - if not cheaper, you could at least help them out. Just a thought.

I recently scavenged and was planning on making a play gym out of this table: The way I look at it, I've got 3 options: A) Set Spencer's (TAG) travel cage on it and hang toys off of it, perhaps with Anya's ('tiel) small tabletop gym on top of her. - What I do now. B) Cut/drill a hole in the middle and extend a 1" PCV center post through it (inserted into the post of the base - I took the top off and saw this is possible) and extend perches off that center post. C) Make an inverted PVC 'U' and hang toys/perches from that. I first thought of PVC pocket flanges as the base, but can't really find ones I like. Instead, it seems I can just drill pockets about 3/4 of the way into the existing 'counter top' and support the PVC that way. I might also put a lip around the tabletop to catch 'stuff.' Thoughts on pros/cons of the options above? Thanks.

That's great about the attempted flight! Look out, world!

Just wanted to continue the log of my experiences with Spencer. There's not a lot of 'progress' to report, we seem to be in a bit of stasis as far as 'closeness' and 'trust.' Still, since those two episodes of scritches, he has been hand-shy. Lately I've spotted him putting his head down and rubbing it against a dish or bottle a couple times, but if I approach to offer a finger, he goes on medium alert and backs into his cage. He's LESS defensive, by very slight degrees, but still defensive. But at least he's not (and never has been) OFFensive, so I'll take it. Last weekend as I cleaned the two fish tanks, he threw one of his tows off his cage/play stand and much to my surprise, he 'took off' after it. I put 'took off' in quotes because he is still very much not flighted (more on that in a bit). He thumped gracelessly to the floor, but instead of looking to be in a panic for a way to get back to his cage, he played with the tossed toy a bit, then checked out what I was doing. He was VERY interested in the splashing water and would walk right up to me to see what I was going on. The moment I would show him any attention, though, he would retreat and get defensive. By now, the dogs (two labs) pretty much ignore him always, even on the floor, but I did have to keep a close eye on the cat. They were on opposite sides of one of the buckets and it was almost cartoonish how one would pretend to be ignoring the other when the other would peek around the bucket. He was out, on the floor for a couple hours. At one point I gave him a pan of water to see if he wanted a batch, but he pretty much just used it to dunk his toy. He very much wants to explore things on HIS terms. It's funny to me what will set him off. I can present all manner of new toys/bottles/paper, and he'll either play with, destroy, or toss them. Yet I got a hunk of grape vine I plan to use on a play stand (more on THAT in another post), and he is TERRIFIED of it. It's almost funny, but of course not. This is real terror. Maybe it's too 'snake-like,' though not any more so than the 'wacky wood' perch already in his cage. This morning, we had a 'first.' He didn't come downstairs with Anya and me for breakfast, so I felt bad just putting him back in his cage after breakfast and when I put Anya away, so I took his cage into my bathroom for some steam and contact while I showered. He's shown interest in the shower itself in the past, so I decided to try something new. I too the food and bottom tray out of the cage and brought the whole think into the shower with me. He was a bit noisy at first and climbed up into his 'defensive' position in the cage, but he very soon was back down on his perch and splashing around in the water. Good times. As for his flight feathers, I'd said before, and the vet agreed, that is looks like his right wing has been scarred to the point that he might not be able to grow flight feathers anymore. The other day when he was doing a big stretch, I'm pretty sure I saw a new feather or two coming in. That would be cool. Cooler still woudl be if he LEAVES THEM ALONE!!! We'll see.

This times a million - as the kids say these days. I've said it before, but it's almost shocking to me how similar your stories of Gilbert are to what I see from Spencer. Just last weekend he wandered onto the kitchen floor to follow me around as I cleaned the two fish tanks. He was VERY interested in the splashing water and would walk right up to me to see what I was doing. The moment I would show him any attention, though, he would retreat and get defensive. He very much wants to explore things on HIS terms. It's also funny to me what will set him off. I can present all manner of new toys/bottles/paper, and he'll either play with, destroy, or toss them. Yet I got a hunk of grape vine I plan to use on a play stand, and he is TERRIFIED of it. It's almost funny, but of course not. This is real terror. Maybe it's too 'snake-like,' though not any more so than the 'wacky wood' perch already in his cage. It is a long road we travel with these guys - with bumps and potholes along the way. Just remember (as I know you do) that the journey is as important as the destination.

It's beak-grinding. He's a content birdy ready for some snoozin'.

Awesome. Remember the honeymoon period will end and usually bring some changes, but enjoy the heck out of it just the same.

There are no words.

Tongue in cheek, perhaps, but very telling of the struggles of keeping a parrot - rehomed, "damaged," or not. I know you're his 'last stop' and forever home and are not going to give up on him/yourself, but others would (or would have already). I just meant that to hear you be able to pinpoint the situation in which the rehoming cycle would ordinarily repeat was "interesting." And sad. For other birds - not Gilbert. I was too short in my reply (was having a hard time articulating and had stared at the text box long enough) and realize I really didn't make my point well. Having just been to a local shelter and shaken pretty hard by the experience, I was thinking about all of the birds not as fortunate as Gilbert, Spencer, Scarlet, etc., etc. As for the rest of your post - it's great to see the steps forward even after the few steps backward with the plastic bottle. You guys are all in it together, and that's awesome.

My 'tiel (12 y.o. - not OLD, but "older") has NEVER been a player. I've rotated toys since day one and tried to get her to play with things with me, but she acts terrified of anything not food. The closest she does to playing is roosting on her swing at night, and picking on rings and jewelry when she's being held. I have tows nearly as old as she is with only one or two bite marks on even the softest bits. My grey - (14 y.o., so also not 'old') is MUCH more active, but really only likes foot/floor toys and bells. Any other hanging toy has yet to really interest him. My old budgie loved to beat the crap out of any and all toys. They're all different. And some only play when we aren't looking.

Oh, wow, that's a bummer. Hoping for the best . . .

One other important thing to remember about florescent bulbs is that although they continue to put out 'light' for a long time, their power diminishes - specifically in the wavelengths you want. Most bulb packaging tells you what the lifespan of the bulb is. I used to doubt it as a way for them to get you to buy more bulbs until I started keeping a planted aquarium. I can definitely tell when my bulbs need replaced in that scenario as the plant growth slows to a crawl. Also, Dave's response about if reptile bulbs can be used for birds is mostly correct, but I wanted to humbly add some clarification. Some bulbs, I'm assuming the ones he was thinking of, are dual-purpose to cover the UV needs and heat requirements. Others are designed to only provide the UV with the heat provided by a separate source. I would say consult the packaging or manufacturer, for as he did say, you do not need a bulb with a heat component and need to be careful with one that has one.

I'm glad you went for it. Even though you say it was impulsive, it was a calculated impulse - you'd given it SOME forethought as your posting here shows. I agree with the thought that sometimes our own worry makes them nervous in turn. Be confident but considerate. Some nervousness is fine and perhaps expected. If you're seeing something more like fear, pull the plug and go home. From what you've said, I think it went great.

What an interesting statement. I wish you all the best possible transition through this period.

I am SO kicking myself for not getting more pictures. I will be sure to do so (after checking with them) whenever I go back.

Not that there's anything wrong with the showers, but I wonder if you could get him to use something like this (without the medicated pads, of course) and/or if there would be any benefit: http://www.amazon.com/Vicks-V1200-Personal-Steam-Inhaler/dp/B0000TN7MY

As I mentioned here, I picked up a new travel cage for Spencer since the one he came with is not much more than a carrier and sometimes he'll 'travel' for a week at a time. The new one is the white one in this pic: Spencer and his plethora of cages. by oblivion9999, on Flickr The one he's sitting on is his old traveler (his full cage in the background). I got the cage on Saturday and set up the dishes, perches and put his FAVORITE BELL EVER and one of his bottles in there and he readily climbed on top to play with the bell from that angle, but he wasn't interested in going in. I expected this to take a while, so I wasn't going to force the issue. Yet on Sunday evening, before going to bed, I tempted him with a bottle again, and he went right inside to play with the bell. I gently closed the door and though he remained calm, he GROWLED for the first time ever. I immediately re-opened the door, and he stayed in there, so I don't think I did any damage by closing the door, but it was an interesting moment. We haven't tried since then, but I think he'll like it sooner rather than later. Edit to add: I realize it's hard to judge the depth (width, actually) from the picture, but it is just about twice the size of his old one. The only things I didn't really like about it are the feed doors are odd-sized and essentially useless and the metal tray in the bottom is VERY shallow. There's a grate, so I'm not too worried about it, but I think cleaning is going to, ironically, be messy.

Here's Spencer's which was special-ordered to have all the bars be horizontal to help him with getting around with his gimpy toes. Spencer's Cage by oblivion9999, on Flickr There's a home-made PVC play-gym/toy-hanger above.